LEGISLATORS RESPOND TO THEIR BACKERS, NOT THE VOTERS

Your editorial on petitions was very inappropriate for the Independence Day weekend. In Florida, we have a totally unresponsive and autocratic Legislature.

This is no surprise, since they are generally not beholden to their constituents at all. Thanks to the gerrymandering that is in place, they are largely beholden only to their parties, their campaign contributors and their personal interests.

The only avenue that voters have to force any needed changes on the Legislature is the state constitution amendment process. This requires a huge and expensive task, since more than 400,000 signatures are required statewide to put something on the ballot, and even then, it is not a sure thing. Florida's Supreme Court can arbitrarily rule an amendment off the ballot for various reasons, notwithstanding the required number of signatures.

After these hurdles are overcome, there is still an election vote with the opposition spreading false rumors about the effects of the change.

We need more control by the people and less by an aristocratic Legislature that keeps itself out of reach of the people. Your function should be to spread factual information on the effects of an amendment and kill the false rumors, not to discourage the only shred of democracy left in this state.